Public Articles

Is DOMA Doomed?

Within a four-week period this summer, three U.S. district court decisions in Gill, Commonwealth, and Perry v. Schwarzenegger were handed down that call into question the constitutional viability of the federal Defense of Marriage Act

Lease Co-Tenancy Provisions: Protecting Retail Tenants While Giving Landlords a Fair Chance to Maintain Vibrant, Tenanted Centers

To keep from being the only tenant operating in a shopping center, national retail tenants generally require that their leases include “co-tenancy” provisions that give them reduced rent and a right to terminate if a certain number of the biggest and most important stores in the center (the “anchor” tenants) close or if fewer than a certain percentage of smaller stores (the “in-line” tenants) are open, but the Landlord should give itself time to find replacement tenants, to restore casualties, and to avoid violating so many tenants’ co-tenancy provisions that all stores in the center close.

Food for Thought: Considerations in Negotiating and Drafting Food and Restaurant Leases

A restaurant lease can look like any other commercial lease, but despite the apparent similarity, a number of provisions specific to the food service use must be adapted and considered in a restaurant lease, whether the lawyer represents the landlord or the tenant.